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Chuck Klosterman’s all over the place this week.

• In Play, which comes with The New York Times: Vote for Gilbert.

I have 45 seconds to deliberate with Gilbert Arenas.

We are standing in the locker room of the Verizon Center in Washington, 20 minutes after the Wizards have been defeated by the Los Angeles Lakers in early February. It’s an uncomfortable situation; people are tired, people are naked and people are tall. Arenas has just showered. There are 18 men huddled around his locker, and they are asking him 18 variations of the same question: “Why did tonight’s outcome occur as it did?” Arenas responds with 18 versions of the phrase “Because that’s how it goes.”

• In Esquire: Things We Think We Know.

We all hate stereotypes. Stereotypes are killing us, and they are killing our children, and they are putting LSD into the water supply. Stereotypes are like rogue elephants with AIDS that have been set on fire by terrorists, except worse. We all hate stereotypes. Seriously. Dude, we fucking hate them.

Except that we don’t. We adore stereotypes, and we desperately need them to fabricate who we are (or who we are not). People need to be able to say things like, “All stereotypes are based on ignorance,” because expressing such a sentiment makes them enlightened, open-minded, and incredibly unpleasant. Meanwhile, their adversaries need the ability to say things such as, “Like it or not, all stereotypes are ultimately based in some sort of reality,” because that kind of semilogic can justify their feelings about virtually anything.”

• The Onion A.V. Club Interview: Random Rules: Chuck Klosterman.

• And his latest book, Chuck Klosterman IV, is reviewed today in The Observer (U.K.).